The swanky, celebrity-studded city of West Hollywood officially has the highest minimum wage of any US city after pay zoomed to $19.08 an hour on Saturday.
Workers in West Hollywood welcomed the increase amid rising rent, gas and food prices, although employers grumbled about growing labor costs that they say could drive them out of business.
Lucian Tudor, chief executive of upmarket restaurant La Boheme, told the Los Angeles Times he has cut staff from 120 to 80 to trim costs. The city’s minimum wage climbed $1 in January to $17.50 an hour for businesses with at least 50 employees.
“These pay increases are about superficiality and about opportunistic politicians who are just trying to make a name for themselves,” Tudor, who would prefer a minimum wage that accounts for tips like what New York City has, told the news outlet.
A one-year waiver is available to employers who demonstrate that complying with the new minimum wage would result in financial hardship.
The city council approved the wage increase in 2021 with the stipulation that full-time employees are entitled to 12 days of paid personal time as well as 10 days of unpaid time.
The minimum wage increased in other cities across the US on Saturday, but none as high as West Hollywood, a city of 35,000 tucked between the cities of Beverly Hills and Los Angeles.
San Francisco’s minimum wage increased more than a $1 to $18.07 an hour. Los Angeles’ is now $16.78 an hour, and the minimum wage in Washington DC is $17, up from $16.10 an hour.
For workers in Los Angeles hotels with 60 rooms or more, the minimum pay increased to $19.73 an hour on Saturday, up from $18.86. Hotel workers in Santa Monica also saw their pay climb to $19.73.
Seattle had the highest minimum wage of any US city in January when its hourly rate increased to $18.69.
Norberto Ruiz, who works in a liquor store in West Hollywood, told the LA Times that a wage increase last summer allowed his family to buy a $150 air conditioner.
“I don’t think people understand how much an extra dollar or two can change people’s lives,” Ruiz told the news outlet.
LA county supervisor Lindsey Horvath, who served as a West Hollywood council member in 2021, told the LA Times she was delighted by both the wage increase and the paid time off.
“I’m very proud that we are looking for ways to ensure that people’s mental and physical wellbeing is protected in their jobs,” she said. “That we are not saying that people have to choose between being able to afford rent and taking time off to care for themselves or a loved one.”
California’s minimum wage increased to $15.50 an hour as of 1 January. However, the federal minimum wage has been stalled at $7.25 an hour since 2009 despite efforts from the Fight for $15 movement to increase the rate as inflation has risen.
